I have researched enough about this to be embarrassing… Regretfully, there isn’t even a single one of this shops in Kansai area so I never got to try one myself.
Let me tell you about sex dolls!
I believe there were some issues with them in the sense that they fell in a legal limbo. All irony aside, considering how prostitution is all a grey area in Japan, these
“love doll brothels” didn’t fit any of the existing categories: soapland, health delivery, esute, massage, etc. Even if you wanted to do business legally, there was no way to register them and get a permit. It was mostly a new business and there wasn’t the tradition to put up a facade for them, as the brothels in Kansai that are supposedly restaurants and tea stores and have been allowed to exist for decades that way. And finally, it seems there wasn’t enough demand, as you can imagine most people would prefer to have sex with a woman, specially since renting one of this dolls wasn’t particularly cheap and you could find P4P at any price range in Japan, and the people who are too nervous to face a woman would probably be equally nervous facing staff or making calls at a love doll brothel.
In short, what I read online, is that most of them closed after the fad passed away, including the few ones that existed in Kansai.
But there are still a few in Tokyo! You would probably would have some issues being foreigner, I assume, if you want to have a chance you would need some very good Japanese and telling them ahead that you understand that these are dolls. Someone should put a review here if it goes to the shop. I think it is possible if you show them you are serious, and not that expensive. I also think it is very much possible for a foreigner to get one of these dolls if you show them you have the money and aren’t just some journalist looking to write an article. Some dolls are sold as they are, you could even get one on Amazon, but the best companies seem to only sell their dolls on demand since they are personalized.
I’m also curious about how realistic these dolls might feel. As for down there, they are the same as any fleshlight/onahoru, there is no special material or contraption that would feel any more advanced. Some models are actually not that expensive, but the most realistic are. Also, it seems they have enough popularity outside Japan for at least a few companies being in the business of exporting them to western countries. Still, they don’t seem to be extremely popular.
I almost forgot, if you would like to see one of these dolls, but not necessarily
take it for ride, there are stores by the manufacturers that have them in exhibition, both in Tokyo and surprisingly in Kansai too. I’m talking, maybe one or two stores at most, at least the easily found. You might need a reservation or a call, the exhibitions are held regularly, I believe weekly, but if you are a woman you can only go on specific and more restricted days.
As interested as I am on this, these dolls feel quite dystopian, like
Ghost in the Shell, or for those who are not familiar with anime, like that
Ex Machina film.
